Cultivating Talent

What this episode covers

"What does a study on Catholic schools and Hispanic teachers in Catholic schools have to do with theology?" asks Dr. Hosffman Ospino. "The answer is: a lot." A turning point for several conversations about Catholic education and Hispanics throughout the country was Boston College's 'Catholic Schools in an Increasingly Hispanic Church: A Summary Report of Findings from the National Survey of Catholic Schools Serving Hispanic Families' (2016). Among the authors of this first-of-its-kind study was Dr. Ospino, then Assistant Professor of Theology and Ministry at Boston College. Six years later, Dr. Ospino is Associate Professor of Hispanic Ministry and Religious Education, and Chair of the Department of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry at Boston College, where he among the Principal Investigators of its latest report, 'Cultivating Talent: A Summary of Findings from the National Study ‘Examining Pathways to Increase the Presence of Hispanic Teachers and Leaders in Catholic Schools' (2022). The study was also led by Boston College School of Theology and Dr. Melodie Wyttenbach, executive director of the Roche Center for Catholic Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development. In this episode of OP Talks, César "CJ" Baldelomar talks to his mentor Dr. Ospino about this latest study, which aims to help those interested in Catholicism "understand and appreciate the various ways in which Hispanics are transforming the American Catholic experience." A particular focus is on research that has supported, strengthened, and transformed Catholic schools in the United States that serve immigrant communities. “One of the things we highlight in this report,” Dr. Ospino told Boston College News, “is that we see, in Hispanic school teachers and leaders, an instance in which the Hispanic community is beginning to shape the structures of the Catholic Church…Hispanic educators are bringing in their own experience, biculturalism, and bilingualism to shape not only the identity of Catholic schools but also the sensibilities that inform that curriculum and the witness of Catholic schools today.” READ MORE Ospino, Hosffman and Patricia Weitzel-O’Neill. "Catholic Schools in an Increasingly Hispanic Church: Musings Inspired in a Recent National Study." Momentum (Winter 2017).

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